CASAs as Mandated Reporters

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As a CASA volunteer you may find yourself in a position to observe and hear matters which families wish to keep private. Your desire to respect their privacy may be in conflict with your role as a mandated reporter of child abuse and neglect.

The Penal Code mandates that certain people must immediately report to the police or the Department of Human Services any knowledge or reasonable suspicion of abuse or neglect of a child. These mandated reporters of child abuse and neglect are generally those people that work directly with children or are in a position to observe aspects of children's lives that might reveal abuse or neglect. By law, CASAs are mandated reporters. (Rule 1424 (j) (2) California Rules of Court.) However, CASAs are only mandated reporters when working within the course and scope of their cases.

The key here is the phrase "reasonable suspicion." You do not need actual knowledge of abuse before you become obligated to report: all you need is a reasonable suspicion based on your common sense and experience. You report by calling the DHS emergency hotline at (415) 558-2650. In cases of abuse (but not neglect) you may also make your report directly to the police.

Simply reporting to the child welfare worker on your case is not sufficient: such a report will not make its way to the central DHS database or engage the emergency response team's attention. Even if the emergency response intake worker asks you to make your report to the child welfare worker assigned to your child, insist that the intake worker take your report. Then offer to call the Child Welfare Worker. If the intake worker does not take your report, it will not be entered in the DHS central database and will not appear in the family’s history should additional reports be made in the future.

You must follow up your verbal report with a written report within 36 hours. The preprinted reporting form is available at the CASA office and your supervisor will help you fill it out. (A blank form is on page 7.) Whenever you are in doubt as to whether or not you should report your suspicions, you should discuss the matter with your case supervisor or you can call the DHS hotline and ask to consult with an intake worker. That person will let you know whether your suspicions are sufficient to justify a report and action by the emergency response team. Also, you must report abuse or neglect even if it occurred a long time ago if the child is still a minor or a different child might be at risk.

If you fail to report, you have committed a misdemeanor and exposed yourself to a fine of up to $1,000 and up to six months in jail. You also expose yourself to a civil lawsuit and possible damages, especially if the child is further abused after you failed to report. However, if you do report, you are absolutely immune from any liability and if someone should sue you for making the report, you are entitled to money from a special state fund in order to pay an attorney to defend you.

As a mandated reporter, a CASA cannot make an anonymous report. But you can request that DHS not reveal you as the reporter. Only under certain limited circumstances will DHS be required to identify you as the reporting party. Once you have made a report, you are entitled to feedback from the DHS emergency response team as to what action was taken.

You must report your knowledge or suspicions of physical, sexual, or emotional abuse and neglect.

Physical abuse is defined as a non-accidental injury inflicted on a child by another person. It does not include reasonable corporeal punishment inflicted by hand that does not leave a mark. Nor does it include consensual fighting between children of like age and size or self-defense by police officers. Any unexplained or poorly explained injury, bruise, or burn should be questioned.

Sexual abuse includes any kind of sexual assault or exploitation and ranges from inappropriate touching to rape and oral copulation to child pornography and performing sex acts in front of a child. Aside from genital injuries and pain, the most common manifestation is a child's highly sexualized behavior or age inappropriate knowledge of sex acts.

Emotional abuse is defined as willful cruelty or unjustifiable punishment without physical injury. This is the hardest form of abuse to pin down, but it can be the most destructive because it destroys self worth and self esteem. The parent that constantly screams at and criticizes a child exhibits this type of abuse. However, since everyone has bad days, it is hard to determine whether the occasional outburst rises to the level of a reportable incident. The needy child, desperate for approval, who is terrified of rejection, may be a victim of emotional abuse. Suspicions in such cases should be discussed with your case supervisor and a DHS emergency response worker.

General neglect is the failure to provide adequate food, clothing, shelter, medical care, education, and supervision with no physical injury involved. Such neglect becomes severe when the child is injured or put at risk for injury by the neglect. Failure to thrive cases are included here. Signs of neglect include malnutrition, inappropriate dress for the weather, unkempt appearance, dirty clothes, unattended medical conditions, and the like. Such children are often isolated, clingy, depressed, and passive. Any drastic changes in a child's behavior may be a signal that abuse is occurring.

When you make a report, a DHS emergency response worker will take your call and assess the nature and extent of the problem. These workers are professionals who are trained to make appropriate investigations of child abuse and neglect. CASAs are not so trained and should always leave the investigation of events surrounding suspected abuse and neglect to the professionals. In fact, approximately 40-50% of the calls received by the DHS hot line are "screened." The information is added to the DHS database and becomes part of the child's family history, but no action is taken. However, these reports are still very important because of their cumulative effect: especially in neglect cases it may take repeated reports to engage DHS response because they do not want to overreact to an isolated incident. Each report adds to the one before it and becomes important evidence in DHS efforts to protect an abused or neglected child.

The other 50-60% of reports made result in a case being assessed in one of two ways. If the child is deemed in imminent danger, DHS will respond and investigate immediately. If there is concern for the child's safety, but the child is not in imminent danger, DHS will respond and investigate within 10 days. The results of DHS investigations vary from case to case. The suspicions may prove to be unfounded. The family may simply be referred to other agencies or services that might help alleviate the problems within the family. DHS might enter into a "voluntary contract" with the family where the family promises to take certain actions to solve their problems and DHS promises to provide certain services. In the most severe cases, DHS will file a petition with the court and ask the court to take jurisdiction over the child by making the child a dependent of the court. The court (and DHS) then becomes responsible for ensuring the safety of the child.

Since CASAs are only involved in cases where the court has declared dependency, your reports become important evidence for the court to consider when deciding the future of your CASA child. Your report may prompt a needed change in placement, or it may prompt DHS to provide the child and the child's caregiver with further needed services. In any event, your duties as a CASA include keeping the court informed of all events in your child's life that might influence the court's decisions regarding that child.

Fears about Reporting

At times, a CASA might feel uncomfortable making a report. CASAs sometimes become very involved with the child's family or caregivers and might be afraid of losing their trust. The CASA might believe that he or she could handle the problem alone, without DHS assistance. The CASA may worry about making things worse for a child, either in the child's current placement or in an unknown new one. A desire not to interfere with cultural differences might also make the CASA hesitate.

None of these reasons excuse a CASA from following the law. Your whole involvement in the child's life is based on your sworn duty to advocate for the best interests of your CASA child. It can never be in a child's best interests to overlook abuse or neglect or to allow it to continue unfettered. Because of a CASA's unique role in the child's life, the CASA may be the only person the child has or feels comfortable to turn to for help. If you don't report, you not only leave the child at risk for further abuse, but you send a message to the child that abuse will be tolerated and that protecting adults is more important. These children rely on us and we should always be a consistent voice for them. We should never let them down.

In order to avoid misunderstandings with your CASA child, you should explain your role as a mandated reporter at the very beginning of your case, and then remind your child from time to time. That way, if your child tells you something that should be reported, the child knows you will report it.

Remember to let the professionals deal with investigating suspicious circumstances. That is NOT part of your role as CASA. Your role is only to report. But also remember that you are not alone. A case supervisor is always available to listen to your concerns and support you if you need to report abuse or neglect. We are here to share your experiences and to help you make appropriate decisions for your CASA child.

—Laurie Anger, Esq., SFCASA Volunteer